A multiple timescale analysis of a mathematical model of the Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway

The Wnt signalling pathway is involved in stem cell maintenance, differentiation and tissue development. Its disregulation has also been implicated in many cancers. β-catenin is a protein that regulates both transcription of many genes and cell–cell adhesion; in response to an external Wnt stimulus the intracellular levels of β-catenin are controlled by the proteins which make up the Wnt/β-catenin signalling pathway. In this paper we present a systematic asymptotic analysis of an existing model of the Wnt signalling pathway due to Lee et al. (PLoS Biol 1:116–132, 2003), highlighting the operation of different pathway components over different timescales. Guided by this analysis we derive a simplified model which is shown to retain the essential behaviour of the full Wnt pathway, recreating the accumulation and degradation of β-catenin in response to a Wnt stimulus.